But the biggest block she made was when she took herself out of basketball after a bout with pneumonia in seventh grade. She didn't return to the court until her sophomore year at Ashton-Franklin Center.

"I just never got back into it," she said. "I was out of school for two weeks with pneumonia and was behind the other players. I was in seventh grade. I was behind a year and I didn't think about it."

But others couldn't help but think about it as the years went by and Prestegaard grew taller and taller.

"When I got past 5-11 people asked me if I was thinking about playing basketball again," the 6-foot-3 junior center said. "I started talking to (varsity head coach) Chris Jahn and (sophomore) Coach (Erin) Doughty and they were really interested in helping me learn basketball again. I decided to give it a try my sophomore year. My teammates also talked me into it."

"As a sophomore she started to fall in love with the game again," Jahn said. "And this summer, she really developed and started to realize she could dominate."

She especially dominates on defense. This season she stands at 163 blocks over 24 games, a school-record that also puts her 19th all-time in the IHSA record books for a single season. She is also tied for seventh all-time with 16 blocks in one game.

But Prestegaard is more than a shot blocker, She also is A-FC's leading rebounder (8.6 rpg), is second in scoring (8.8 ppg) and fifth in steals (1.3 spg). It has forced Jahn to pay more attention to her growth - both physically and athletically.

"I was going to measure her wingspan soon," he said. "Another good year next year and she'll probably be looked at by some folks in the college ranks. I don't know how high that would go, depending on how good she was, but I'd like to have those stats on her because she's becoming a really excellent basketball player."

A good shot blocker can relay on height and athleticism. A great one has all that along with a strong sense of anticipation and timing.

"Against our own girls, in practices when we work on post moves, they can make the best move and she'll wait her turn and just swat it," Jahn said. "She's there on missed shots and for the putback. Sometimes she'll let someone drive around her, knowing she can get the block from behind.

"So she's got good timing and she's a good jumper too. She's making a big impact whether she's blocking or not, just her presence in there makes a difference."

Blocking is clearly fun for Prestegaard. But what's more fun for the junior is her hanging out with her teammates.

"We all get along like sisters and we're really close with the coach and his family," she said. "We're really just an extended family that just so happens to play basketball together."

And to think, her record-breaking high school experience almost didn't happen.

"I don't know what I'd be without basketball and I'm glad I gave this a shot," Prestegaard said. "I've learned a lot of new things and a lot of new friendships and a lot of opportunities that I wouldn't have gotten in any other sport. The recognition is nice, but it's really about the team and we're accomplishing new things on the court."